


Through the Radio

by aphrosCartographer



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-02
Updated: 2015-07-02
Packaged: 2018-04-07 06:26:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4252836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aphrosCartographer/pseuds/aphrosCartographer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I have an idea as to how Carlos should pop the question. This is it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Through the Radio

**Author's Note:**

> One day I may stop writing proposal fics.  
> Today is NOT that day.

“Today is a good day to find a bridge to burn. Every day is a good day to find a bridge to burn. Burn those bridges in order to protect yourselves from the people that can hurt you the most. Burn all the bridges you can find. Protect yourself. Welcome to Night Vale.”

Cecil leaned back in his studio chair as the opening music to the radio show played through his headphones. He looked around his small, cozy office and smiled. His coffee (dark, endless, and impossible to see through) filled the room with a sweet aroma as he cradled the small cup in his hands. There were pictures scattered on his desk -including a small drawing of Khoshekh that Janice had done for him- and hung about his walls that smiled back at him. The large blank space where his painting of Carlos had once hung didn’t make him sad anymore. Carlos was back in Night Vale for good, a fact that still made Cecil giddy whenever he thought about it. He thought about the opera, remembering how it had felt to turn and see Carlos standing there after all the oddities that had transpired. He remembered feeling like everything was going to be okay because he not only had Lot 37 back, but also because he had his Carlos back with him. Cecil shook his head to clear his thoughts. He had to focus on giving his radio show for the day, not on things that were past and were beginning to fade into fact. 

But that smile on his face; that refused to go away. 

He was barely five minutes into his broadcast when his phone rang. It was Carlos! _That’s odd_ , Cecil thought, _he knows not to call me in the middle of a broadcast. Hopefully he’s alright._ He hastily apologized to his listeners and sent them to an early commercial break so he could take the call.

“Carlos? Is everything alright?” Cecil tried to hide the panic that was encroaching into his voice. Carlos must have picked up on it because he quickly apologized.

“Sorry Cecil I didn’t mean to scare you! Everything is fine, I, uh, just had something… scientifically significant to share with your listeners that I discovered in the lab today.” Cecil breathed a sigh of relief into the phone receiver and Carlos laughed. “See? Everything is totally fine.”

“Alright hang on a few seconds I think the commercial is almost over. I’ll introduce you and then you can tell us about what you’ve found!” 

“Hehe… thanks Cecil. Hopefully you find it interesting!”

Now it was Cecil’s turn to laugh, “I’m sure I’ll find anything you have to say interesting, Carlos.”

The commercial came to an abrupt ending with a literal BANG, and Cecil was back on the air. He put his phone on speaker mode so both his audience and Carlos could hear what he had to say next. 

“Listeners! My boyfriend, Carlos, whom I’m certain you all remember, has called in to give us a big scientific announcement about something he has been working on in his lab. I’m positive it’s super cool!” Cecil picked up his phone and held it closer to his microphone, waiting expectantly for Carlos to start speaking. 

“Uh… hello people of Night Vale! It’s Carlos, and I…ah… I have something I would like to share with all of you.” 

_That’s weird,_ Cecil pondered, _Carlos never sounds terribly nervous on the air_. An awkward pause filled the room as Carlos’ nerves seemed to get the better of him. Cecil was seconds away from saying something when Carlos began speaking again, his voice stronger this time.

“Sorry about this interruption, Night Vale, I just have a couple of words I would like you all to hear. I want to talk to you all, not about science, but about something else.”

Cecil nearly dropped the phone. Something had to be wrong. A Carlos that didn’t want to talk about science was almost as strange as a library that actually loaned out books. Like, how weird would that be, right?

“I know I told Cecil to tell you all that I had a big scientific announcement to make, but I lied. Sorry about that. After spending all that time in the Desert Otherworld, I learned a lot about myself and a lot about science. Now, don’t get me wrong, science is still _super cool_ , but…”

Cecil shifted in his chair, wishing he could think of something to say. 

“But I realized recently that science isn’t what makes me truly happy. I love doing experiments and love finding out new things, but, at the end of the day, science isn’t what makes me feel at home. Science isn’t what makes me feel welcome. Science isn’t what gives me a hug at the end of a long day and tells me that everything is going to be okay. Science… isn’t what waited for me, for literally _hundreds_ of days to realize what I am about to say.”

Another pause and Cecil had forgotten to breathe. It was like the entire city had fallen silent in anticipation of Carlos’ words. No cars drove past the station, no dogs barked, no person screamed helplessly into the void. Then suddenly, the door to the studio turned and creaked open ominously. Cecil narrated the events unfolding before him into the microphone as best he could. It was his job, after all, to keep the people of Night Vale informed. 

“Listeners, I… I don’t know why Carlos stopped speaking, but my studio door is being opened by someone I can’t see. How did they get in here without alerting Station Management? And the station interns all went out to get us lunch so it couldn’t possibly be them it’s… it’s… Carlos?”

Carlos stood in the doorway, one had on the door knob, the other clutching his cell phone. 

“Hi, Cecil.”

“Carlos, what are you doing here? I thought…”

Cecil let his voice trail off as Carlos stepped into the room and closed the door behind himself. He shoved his phone into one of the pockets on his lab coat and pulled out a small box. He walked around the desk until he was in front of Cecil and bent one knee to kneel in front of the baffled radio host. 

“Cecil, I owe you a lot more than I think you know. And I’m sorry it took me so long to understand. While I was away in the Desert Otherworld, dealing with warring clans and phones that never needed to be charged, I learned something. I mean, I learned a lot of science-y things, but I learned a lot about myself too. I wasn’t my happiest when I was doing experiments or was out interviewing locals for my research. I wasn’t happy doing science with Kevin or exploring the wilderness with Alicia. Cecil, I was my happiest when I was talking to you. Our phone calls or text messages were the highlights of my days. And I had to lose all of my collected data in order for me to realize that. And for that I want to say that I’m sorry. You make me happier than anything else in this world, Cecil. I don’t want to take you for granted,” he paused, taking a moment to open the small case and display its contents to Cecil, “Cecil Gershwin Palmer, I’m not really sure how you all do this in Night Vale, but would you do me the honor of marrying me?”

Cecil still had his hands over his mouth and couldn’t do anything more than nod. Carlos’ face spilt into a wide grin and he pulled the ring out of the box and gently slid it onto Cecil’s finger. Cecil felt tears running down his face and smiled down at Carlos. _His_ Carlos. The scientist reached up to wipe away the tears from Cecil’s face before leaning closer for a kiss. Cecil tried to pull him up which threw both of them off balance and sent them tumbling on the ground, breathless with laughter. Carlos was the first to recover and he stood up quickly, leaning towards the microphone on Cecil’s desk.

“Citizens of Night Vale and patrons of my dear Cecil’s radio show… He said yes!”

Cecil laughed as the interns loudly flooded into his studio shouting their congratulations. Very obviously none of them had actually gone out to get lunch and had been hiding in preparation for this moment. Amidst all the confusion, Carlos’ hand suddenly interrupted his vision and he gladly accepted the help. He allowed himself to be pulled to his feet and put an arm around the scientist, planting a small kiss on his cheek.

“So, how did you get Station Management to agree to all of this?”

Carlos rubbed the back of his neck, “Ah… well... To be honest, I had quite a lot of help. The people of Night Vale really love you a lot Cecil,” he laughed, “I mean _obviously_ they love you a lot. Once I told some people what I was planning, tons of them jumped on board and offered their assistance.”

Cecil’s mouth dropped open in sudden realization, “My radio show! Oh my god we are _still_ on the air, sorry everyone!” he clapped his hands for silence, “Let me finish this up quickly.” Cecil gathered up his headphones and replaced them over his ears as he settled back into his chair (which Carlos had thoughtfully returned to its upright position). Carlos stood behind him, his hands on either side of Cecil’s head, his weight tipping the chair back ever so slightly. Cecil couldn’t help but smile as he glanced around the room. More people kept filing in, filling his small radio station with the living, breathing, and grinning faces of the people he loved most. _Do not cry Cecil, you have a show to finish out! Be professional!_ He cleared his throat and began speaking into the microphone.

“Citizens of Night Vale… my valued and adored listeners, I don’t know where to begin ending this show. So I’m going to end it by saying Thank You. Thank you, Night Vale, for being my home. Thank you for supporting me throughout my years and through what I hope will be many more years as your radio host. Thank you for sharing this day with me, and…and…” he couldn’t contain his joy any longer and he squealed into the microphone, “And I’m getting married!” The entire room burst out laughing and Carlos kissed the top of Cecil’s head. “Tune in next for the sound of water rushing down an endless void and, as always…” 

“Goodnight Night Vale, goodnight.”


End file.
